Epilogue
by Curlscat
Summary: Written because I feel that Ms. Wrede could have done a bit more writing before she ended her stories. Epilogues for her collection of short stories, "Book of Enchantments." If you haven't read that (which you should), this won't make much sense. Edited!
1. Rikiki and the Wizard

**AN~ This is my first (and last) Enchanted Forest Chronicles fic. It's not exactly set to the series, but to Book of Enchantments. There'll be one chapter per story in there. I kind of figured nobody would mind, since it IS technically the last story for the characters, and everyone seems to be shoving all the Patricia C. Wrede stories here. Plus this category's gotten a little stale, I figured it could use some new blood.**

**Disclaimer: Really? Do we really need this?**

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**Rikiki and the Wizard Epilogue**

The wizard was sick of chestnuts. Everywhere he went, chestnuts, chestnuts, chestnuts! It was ridiculous!

Of course, he supposed he did deserve it, sort of. That was the penalty for lying to the gods, or at least the chipmunk god. And the whole thing about giving Ryvenna to the gods might have been a littel cruel. After all, he hadn't asked her.

She'd just gotten married, Ryvenna. He missed her. The house seemed so empty without his wonderful daughter, or any of his former customers.

All in all, his life wasn't very good.

Oh well. At least no one would ever forget him.


	2. The Princess, the Cat, and the Unicorn

**"The Princess, the Cat, and the Unicorn" Epilogue**

Elyssa's wedding was a marvelous affair... In her opinion, at least.

The councillors, however, were of a different mind. After all, she had married a CAT! And not a respectable cat, even, a MOUSER!

Elyssa had gotten very offended at that and pointed out that, for cats, mousing was VERY respcetable, thank you very much!

Then they went on to complain about the fact that she hadn't cooperated with the unicorn, that she sent it dandelions and a princess who she'd never even met instead, that she had gone adventuring in the first place...

The list went on and on. So, after her honeymoon, Elyssa and Riddle went to see her father.

"Daddy, why do we have councillors?"

The king looked startled. "I... don't know. I think I inherited them from your grandfather."

"Can we fire them, please?" Elyssa asked. "They don't do much good."

"But what would they do?" the king asked.

"They could go to Hildegarde's kingdom," Riddle suggested.

"That, my boy," the king said, "Is a WONDERFUL idea!"

So they sent the councillors to Hildegarde, and then EVERYONE lived happily ever after.


	3. Roses by Moonlight

**AN~ This one SERIOUSLY needed an epilogue, in my opinion. I mean, did she go inside or not?**

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Adrian was still outside. Sam kept looking for her, but she wasn't there. She checked the window a few times, and for the most part, there was the silhouette of a girl with a cloud of smoke trailing from her mouth. She really ought to stop that. But once, there were two people, and once, there wasn't anyone. Sam wondered where they'd gone. Then she looked out, and Adrian was back. She wasn't moving.

Sam looked around at all those people outside. When she thought about it, Adrian really meant more to her than they did, except her parents. After all, if one of her friends was sitting outside, she wouldn't keep checking over and over for him or her. And, with that frame of mind, Sam really ought to go out and talk to Adrian.

So she did. "Hey."

Adrian glanced up in surprise. "Not in the party?"

"I was," Sam said, "but there was something missing."

"What?" Adrian asked.

Sam looked at her dryly. "Do you really have to ask? I came out here, didn't I?"

"I guess you did," Adrian said. "It's more than I expected, honestly."

"So are you coming?" Sam asked.

Adrian looked up, and gave Sam a smile, a real one, for the first time in ages. "Yes."


	4. The SixtyTwo Curses of Caliph Arschenadd

I was sitting in the garden again when Tumpkin showed up, looking utterly depressed.

"Well you're a bright ray of sunshine this morning," I said. "What's wrong?"

"Father's decided I need to get married," Tumpin said, sitting down on the bench next to me. "He's trying to convince me about that tzarina who wouldn't leave me alone at my birthday party. I think her parents have been talking to him."

I rememebered that. I didn't like her. "What did you tell him?"

"That I'd think about it, but it wasn't likely, because I'm interested in someone else."

"Oh." That made me feel a little better, but not much. "Who?"

He glanced at me in surprise. "I thought you knew."

I shook my head. "No clue. Enlighten me?"

"You," he said. Just like that.

I was dumbfounded. Dumbfounded, but very, very happy, which led me to the conclusion that I felt the same way, and I told him so. He grinned. I grinned back. We spent a lot of time just sitting there on the bench, smiling at each other.

Then Mother showed up, and of course she knew something was going on, and then we had to tell her, which led to telling Father, which eventually led to telling the caliph, which led to a whole 'nother fiasco, after which Tumpkin and I ended up engaged.

I sort of went through this whole time just smiling at Tumpkin, not paying much attention to anything else, right up until the wedding. Then he kissed me, and I definitely wasn't paying attention to anything else. I still haven't quite recovered, and Tumpkin and I spent most of our time together, which, honestly, isn't much of a change.

But it's still amazing.


	5. Earthwitch

**AN~ I never really liked this story... It always seems sort of depressing, and I wasn't connected to it like I get to the other ones...**

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Evan and Mariel were together, finally. He was so happy about this, almost nothing else mattered. She didn't seem particularly depressed about it, either. He wasn't king anymore, but it wasn't important.

He'd never thought he'd be able to say that, but his seven years in service of the earth had changed his outlook tremendously. He didn't need to be king anymore, and his kingdom didn't need him. He might go back and find a few of his true friends, but for now Mariel was enough for him.

They had a small house on the edge of the kingdom, and they were well settled. He was fairly certain their story was over now, that all was done. They could simply be Evan and Mariel, as she'd wanted.


	6. The Sword Seller

**AN~ Does anyone else think this story is dusty? By the way, as I'm a romance freak, I'll be adding pairings to as many of these as possible. **

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Auridan watched Cyndal greet her cousins sadly. It was the end of the friendship they'd formed over the journey, most likely. He was a lowly swordsman, and she was a lady. Nothing more was likely to come out of it. Still...

He wanted there to be more. He'd thought, maybe, that she wanted more, too, but how could she, when she had this?

Except... she was looking back at him. And then she beconed him forward. He walked up to her and she grabbed his hand.

"I want you with me," she told him.

"I will be," he answered her. "As long as you want me."


	7. The Lorelei

**AN~ This has always been my favorite of the stories in this book, even though it feels dusty, too.**

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Beth watched Janet and Dan with a smile on her face. They were just sitting there, talking, but that was more than they would have done a while ago. She supposed you couldn't go through something like what they had and not be closer afterwards, but they were more than close. Beth could tell.

They spent a lot of time together, laughing, telling stories, singing, and one of them would put their hands over the other one's ears at the most random times, which sent them into fits of laughter, and was pretty funny to watch, too. Beth could tell they were going to end up as more than friends soon. It was just natural.

Not that they noticed. They were just friends, as far as they were concerned. Oh, if they only knew...

Beth had an eye for these things. She could just tell. They were going to do amazingly well for each other.


	8. Stronger Than Time

Arven was alone. Alone and dying.

He didn't think anyone would bury him, and he barely thought anyone would notice he was gone. A childless man whose friends and family had all died some time ago? Not likely.

He was ready to go, though. It was lonely on the mountain now, and, after taking care of a princess for a few days, even lonlier than it had been before. So as he sat on his porch and watched the sunrise, he knew it was time to go. He wondered if Una had waited for him.

And as he breathed his last, he found out.


	9. Cruel Sisters

Anne sat in the convent, devoid of all feeling.

She hadn't killed her sister, nor had she spilled ink on her best gown when they were children. Both were accidents of Eleanor's, and she had recieved the blame for both of them. But somehow, she didn't care anymore.

She'd loved Eleanor, once. When she was a beautiful baby and not a horrid liar, things had been nice. Then she grew up, and she was spoiled far more than either Anne or Meg had been, and she lied. She always told the most dreaful lies, and it made sense that her last lie was one that would kill her sister. Because the only one Eleanor had ever loved was Meg.

Anne had loved her parents and Meg, and William, before she knew what he was like. Eleanor hadn't cared about him, all she wanted was to ruin Anne's life one more time, and on the walk, when she'd slipped, even though Anne had tried to rescue her, she blamed her for her death.

Yet Anne had a hard time caring. She'd be going to join her sister soon, and all she felt was regret that she was leaving Meg all alone to the cruel world, to be the only one who saw things. Meg's eyes had always been too good for her peace of mind.

It was better this way. Meg could get on with her own life, and learn to take care of herself.

Still, she regretted never telling anyone what had really happened.


	10. Utensile Strength

Shiara stared at the crowd at the castle in astonishment. "What is going on here?"

Kazul gave a dragony shrug and said, "Maybe it's a party for Daystar. He _is_ eighteen today, you know."

"I know, that's why we're here, after all," Shiara replied, keeping the exasperation out of her voice- if barely. "But they wouldn't have a party and not invite us, would they?"

"No, I don't think they would," Kazul said thoughtfully. "Mendanbar might, but Daystar is much too polite for that, and Cimorene too efficient. I suppose it must be something else, then."

At that moment, Daystar appeared, walking with a pretty girl and a rather dazed-looking knight. "Oh, hello!" he said. "Give me a minute, I'll be right there!" He pushed the knight and the girl, who looked to be a princess, off to one side, saying, "Why don't you two tell each other what you've been up to?" Then he came back and stood in front of Shiara and Kazul. "Sorry about that. It's been a bit busy areound here."

"Really?" Shiara asked. "I hadn't noticed."

Daystar blinked. "You're in a wonderful mood today."

Shiara glared at him silently.

"I think she's jealous," Kazul said, walking towrds Cimorene. "Now I'm going to find out what's going on here, since you don't seem to be in too much of a hurry to explain. Cimorene!" Kazul trundled off in the direction of Daystar's mother.

"What would you be jealous of?" Daystar asked.

"Honestly, Daystar," Shiara rolled her eyes. "You are _so_ clueless sometimes. And thanks for the invitation to your birthday party!" She returned to glaring at him.

Daystar looked shocked. "Birthday party? Is today my birthday? It is, isn't it? Funny, it's been so busy around here, I'd completely forgotten."

"I take it back," Shiara said. "_That_ is clueless. So what's all this for, then?" she asked, gesturing at the crowd, and the princess and knight, who were getting very cozy under the tree.

"It's a long story," Daystar said. "It started with a magician who created the ultimate wapon, which turned out to be a frying pan, and they had to find the right person and-"

"Wait a second," Shiara interrupted. "Frying pan?"

"The frying pan of doom, actually," Daystar said. "It was an accident. Anyway, to find the right person for it, we decided to hold a tournament with a bakeoff, since it's a frying pan, and there's some really good chocolate cake you should have later, if there's any left, and this evil magician showed up and tried to kidnap our kitchen help, because she's the princess who's- getting _very _friendly with that knight, he wants to protect her, but she's the person the frying pan's meant for, so I don't particularly think she needs it, and she hit him with the frying pan-"

"The knight?" Shiara interrupted again.

"No, the magician," Daystar said. "Would you stop interrupting? It's very rude. Then the magician turned into a giant poached egg, and we had to find another prize for the tournament, but it's all over now."

Shiara was quiet for a minute after that. "Wow. You've been busy."

"I suppose," Daystar said. "I missed you, though."

"Why?" Shiara asked.

Daystar raised his eyebrows. "And you say _I'm_ clueless? You're my best friend. Now come have some cake before it's all gone."

"_Just_ your best friend?" Shiara asked, following him.

"We could be more, if you wanted," Daystar offered in an offhand way. To the crowd he said, "Excuse me, I have a very important person who needs chocolate cake. Thank you."

"I think I do," Shiara said. "Wait- did you just ask me out?"

Daystar handed her a piced of cake. "I did, didn't I? Did you say yes?"

Shara took the cake with a smile. "Yup."

Cimorene watched with a smile of her own. It looked like things were finally over for good.


End file.
